Researched by: Aarthi Ramnath, Anannya Parekh & Aakriti Anand
Biden is here to stay!
The context: Joe Biden’s first debate against Trump was so bad that a staggering 60% of voters wanted Biden to drop out of the race. The entire week has been spent in fevered speculation about his next move. Read our Big Story for more on the debate’s fallout.
What happened now: Biden’s spokesperson broke every Democrat’s heart by confirming he will “absolutely not” withdraw. And Biden told key supporters: "I'm in this race to the end.” And to reassure Democratic governors, Biden said all he needs to ace his job as prez is “to get more sleep and work fewer hours, including curtailing events after 8 pm.” To think our Modi-ji foolishly goes around boasting about his 3.5-hour sleep routine. (Agence France-Presse via The Hindu)
Madhya Pradesh’s missing women
Between 2021 and 2024, over 31,000 women—including 2,944 underaged girls—went missing in Madhya Pradesh. According to newly disclosed data, an average of 28 women and three children go missing in the state every day. MP tops the list for missing person cases—and many go unreported. Data point to note: “A total of 676 women have gone missing in Ujjain in the last 34 months, but not a single case has been registered.” (NDTV)
The fatal cost of pollution in India
A new Lancet study shows that short-term exposure to air pollution led to a total of 33,000 deaths—between 2008 and 2019. That’s 12,000 in Delhi, followed by Mumbai (5,100), Calcutta (4,700) and Bangalore (2,102). The surprise stat: Shimla, where the air is supposedly cleaner, also reported 59 deaths each year. Also this: “The study…found that PM2.5 concentrations in these 10 cities exceeded the safe limits defined by the World Health Organisation on 99.8% of the days.” (The Hindu)
Speaking of air pollution: Google’s carbon emissions jumped by 48% between 2019 and 2023—despite its target of going “net zero” by 2030, similar to their rivals Microsoft. The culprit: data centres to power their big AI plans. Our Big Story has more on the alarming energy costs of AI. (Financial Times, paywall, The Guardian)
Neil Gaiman accused of sexual assault
The best-selling author has been accused of sexual assault by two women—who were in consensual relationships with him. They allege “rough and degrading sex” that was not always consensual. For example:
The woman, named Scarlett, claimed that Gaiman sexually assaulted her within hours of their first meeting, stripping naked and joining her in the bath. She was 22 and he was 61…On another occasion, Scarlett alleged that the sex between them “was so painful and so violent” that she lost consciousness.
She was the nanny to Gaiman’s child. He claims they only “cuddled” and “made out” in the bath—and it was consensual. She filed a police report, but the New Zealand police never interrogated him—even though he allegedly offered to meet the officers.
The other person: is an American woman who says she had a relationship with Gaiman when she was 20—and he was in his mid-forties:
K alleged that during a trip to Cornwall in 2007, she told Gaiman that she did not want to engage in penetrative intercourse because she had a urinary tract infection, but he went ahead and the act left her “screaming” in agony.
The accusations came out on Wednesday, in a four-part podcast series investigation. Gaiman has denied the accusations. We are personally devastated. (Telegraph UK, paywall, The Wrap)
A very Bharatiya English textbook
The context: A great part of the government’s education policy rehaul involves rewriting textbooks—as we explained in this Big Story. Many of the edits involve rewriting history, as well. Last month, NCERT came under fire for removing the mention of Babri Masjid from the Class 12 textbook for Political Science.
What happened now: Apparently, the government is not willing to leave English textbooks, either. The new edition for Class 6 has eliminated all Western writers and preferences—replacing them with Indian counterparts. That doesn’t sound too bad except the textbook appears to be less interested in teaching English—than propaganda. Example:
A section in this chapter titled ‘Hamara Bharat, Incredible India!’ begins with a seven-sentence passage that refers to India only as ‘Bharat’ – “Bharat has been known worldwide as a land of wise and heroic individuals…All these elements ensure that Bharat prospers and is respected globally.”
In the Chapter titled “Nurturing Nature,” a section on ‘Spices that Heal Us’ speaks of uses of spices other than cooking. It tries to illustrate this through a letter from a grandmother to her grandchildren that details a list of natural cures and “benefits of spices.”
Indian Express has lots more.
Ants have amputations, too!
Ants are the first non-human species that can perform surgical amputations. A new study shows that when one ant is injured, the others cooperate to perform an amputation. Here’s how it works:
The ant amputation procedure lasted around 40 minutes and followed the same pattern each time: “They start licking the wound with their mouth parts and then they move up the leg with their mouth until they reach the shoulder. There, they will start to bite quite ferociously for many minutes at a time,” said [behavioural scientist Erik] Frank. “The injured ant will sit their calmly, allowing the procedure to occur and not complaining until the leg is cut off.”
The ants use this as treatment to reduce the spread of infection from the wound. Also: the carpenter ants can tell the difference between types of wounds, and use different strategies of care for each.
FYI: If a carpenter ant has a femur injury, 95% of them can survive if they get an amputation, but only 45% can survive without one. You can see the procedure in action below. Washington Post (paywall) and CNN have more nerdy details.
Three things to see
One: The Indian cricket team received a hero’s welcome when they landed in Mumbai. Watch the insane turnout for the roadshow below.
And here are Virat and Hardik adorably leading the cheering squad:
Two: Long before the dinosaurs came along, Earth was home to this creepy-looking creature. Scientists have named the salamander-like tetrapod Gaiasia jennyae. According to them, “likely used its wide, flat head and front teeth to suck in and chomp unsuspecting prey”— “acting like an aggressive stapler.” Okay then. (Associated Press)
Three: Sixteen years later, the cast of the iconic movie ‘Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na’ including lead actors Imran Khan and Genelia D’souza put out this sweet tribute to the film. Brb, crying!
Takshashila: A doorway to public policy
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